Sunday, November 20, 2011

Quality Delivered


Good Samaritan Hospital recently had a celebration dinner and fund raising event in honor of winning the 2010 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.  It is the only formal recognition of a public or private organization in any field given by the U.S. Government.  Only a few health organizations have won this prestigious award and  I am very proud to belong to an organization that is so committed to quality.  All the physicians at Dupage Ophthalmology belong to the medical staff at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital and are active members of Advocate Physician Partners.

Our practice has always been committed to quality.  Dr. Sheridan Lam, my partner, was recently published in the peer reviewed journal of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery.  He presented the data in our cataract outcomes as we continue to refine our preoperative measurements.  The goal of cataract surgery is to remove the patient’s lens and replace it with a plastic lens (the IOL or implant).  The surgeon can select the power of the implant and can often make the patient see without glasses.

Various studies over the years have looked at how accurate surgeons can pick an implant.  As the surgical precision improves, the error rate goes down.  The goal is to get the implant to less than 0.5 diopter units.

National Health Service-United Kingdom study in 2009
  • 61% of patients should be within 0.50 D

Dr. Neuhann and staff from Germany reported in 2011
  • 80% of patients were within 0.50 D

Dupage Ophthalmology ongoing results 2011
  • 98% of our patients are within 0.50 D
    90% of our patients are within 0.25 D

We strive for excellence and we never stop.  Our patients deserve the best.